


Rebound Danganronpa: Resolution

by FlowersandKnives, SBYAH



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Angst and Feels, Angst and Humor, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Attempted Murder, Background Relationships, Broken Promises, Brutal Murder, Character Death, Dangan Ronpa Spoilers, Developing Friendships, Dorks in Love, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Manipulation, Eventual Relationships, Eventual Romance, Everyone Has Issues, Everyone Needs A Hug, Execution, Fan Killing Game (Dangan Ronpa), Idiots in Love, Implied Relationships, Killing Game (Dangan Ronpa), Mind Games, Mind Manipulation, Monokuma (Dangan Ronpa) Being An Asshole, Multi, Murder, Original Character Death(s), Original Character(s), Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Past Relationship(s), Platonic Relationships, Slow Build, Tags May Change, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-06
Updated: 2020-08-24
Packaged: 2021-03-04 02:07:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,143
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24756022
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FlowersandKnives/pseuds/FlowersandKnives, https://archiveofourown.org/users/SBYAH/pseuds/SBYAH
Summary: This is basically a fan-made Danganronpa game/fanfiction.A new killing game has started in a new school and with different talented elites participating! The new location for this killing game is a abandoned amusement park~Let's have some fun in this new semester!
Kudos: 3





	1. A Warm Welcome to Despair

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The ultimates find themselves in a strange place.
> 
> Introducing some of the Ultimates through our protagonist!

It’s dark...Why is it dark? Well actually, a preferable question would be ‘what happened.’ Hands identify around a face, tugging the cloth blocking their vision and questioning whether they were sleeping in a glass hallway would...come later, currently, gathering their thoughts is hard enough. Last they remembered, they’d been standing in the front gates of Hope’s Peak, ready for the first day for the academy! But it was so sudden, as if the world had been pulled from beneath them, and everything was pitch black. Sitting up, Ael began to check for a head injury but only to come out empty handed. 

“Oh sweet! You’re finally up!” Springing up from the sudden voice, they twisted around to see someone new. The pale blonde crouching on the ground behind them, grinning enthusiastically. “Man, I didn’t think you’d ever wake up!” Ael sheepishly scratched their head, many things didn’t make sense currently. “Uhm, who are you exactly….?” There was an awkward pause before the girl responded, standing up and dramatically striking a pose. “ **I’m Elineth, the Ultimate Weather Girl!** Nice to meet cha!” After a moment of staring at the weather girl, Ael nervously laughed. “Uh, I’m Ael. Where are we exactly?” The wide grin on Elineth dimmed, she shifted to help them up. “To be honest, I’m not really sure, maybe one of the others knows.” That caught the smaller ones attention. “Others. There are other people here?” The blonde gave a laugh, grabbing her companions hand and ran down the hall. “Yeah, and we’re going to meet up with em’!!” Ael stumbled a bit as they were dragged down the multiple conflicting halls. 

* * *

Eventually the glass walls came to a close, instead opening up into a large flower garden. Multiple other teens were scattered, some standing while others sitting together. Ignoring how strange they looked, they all seemed just as confused as them. “Is this everyone?” A giant of a guy, towering over the rest in his black tracksuit asked, calling out. Elineth pops up with a chripper, “Everyone I could find, Dorian!!” Dorian, as he was now named, nodded at her. Everyone was silenced as he clapped his hands. “Alright, time to figure out why we’re here!” From somewhere to Ael’s left, they heard a soft “Shouldn’t we’ve questioned that sooner?” “I’ve already looked around the perimeter.” The owner of the voice stepped forward from her place on the sidelines.“The entire garden is surrounded by a clothed fence, and the gate is locked from the outside-” 

Before the beauty could continue, a high pitch giggle sounded from the bushes. Multiple screams erupted as a small... a stuffed bear leaped from behind one of the rose bushes. Said bear, (still questioning that!!) was split coloured white and black. “Wow you guys sure are loud.” 

Oh. It talks... congrats, Ael, you’ve lost your mind.

Wait never mind, everyone else screamed furthermore. 

A boy with dark blue hair crouched in front of the demon thing. “Check it! A talking teddy bear!!” He cackled madly, resting a gloved hand on the bear. “Hey, I’m not a teddy! I’m Monokuma!” Ael momentarily thought about how unoriginal that was before going back to cowering in fear.

Said bear removed the guys hand, strutting his way into the middle of their makeshift circle of people. “Listen up, brats! I’m the one in charge here, I make the rules!!” Dorian steppes forward once more, although sweat was clear on his face. “And why is that?” Monokuma chuckled evilly, red eyes ominously gleaming. “I’m the head of this _fine_ _establishment_ , also known as your new _permanent home!_ ” “W-what do you mean by that?!” A brown haired girl squeaks from her spot hiding behind another tall ass guy. The bear sighed before talking to them like toddlers, “This is your new home.” The previously mentioned girl erupted in frantic babble, spouting questions. Various another’s throw in their own questions, with Ael just pulling on their shirt collar in nervousness.

Simple, all you have to do is graduate!” He gave a grand pause, spinning and striking a pose. “You can graduate by murdering one of your fellow classmates!” The bear gestures around at them. “If you can get away with it, you graduate and get to leave!” A small girl, who was somehow smaller than Ael, spoke up this time. “And what happens to everyone else?” Monokuma giggles manically for the fifth time. “Punishment!! If the blackened gets figured out they get executed, but if they get away then everyone else gets punished!” 

Their legs gave out beneath them, mind reeling with the new information. Ael watched numbly as Dorian and two others began yelling at the stuffed bear who merely waved them off. They scarcely registered someone’s hand on their shoulder. It was the girl from earlier, the one with dark red hair. “Hey, come on. Get up.” Eventually they regained enough feeling in their legs to do so. Looking around, they saw how some others were faring. Dorian was talking with a few classmates, seemingly debating something. There was a clown reluctantly trying to comfort the meek girl from before who was sobbing on the floor. Everyone else was standing around awkwardly like them, looking at the ground.

Hey! Guys check it!” Elineth, who’d wandered off at some point mid-monokuma talk, called from the other side of the garden. “The gates open!” She turned on her heel, sprinting in the other direction with the other students following. One by one they each emerged from the flowery enclosure, stopping defunct in shock. The garden had only been a small part of their enclosed space. 

It was a fucking theme park.

* * *

Everyone stood, still gawking at the site before them. It was a long path with shut down booth games on the sides, a rusted Ferris at one end and a diner at the other. “This place is fucking huge!” The clown from before yelled running up to one of the bored booths. “We should search for clues or an exit.” Said the girl who’d checked the garden before, hands on her hips. Dorian made a noise of acknowledgement, clapping his hands once more. “Everyone split up and checked around! Meet back here afterwards!” He grabbed the nearest person next to him, a shorter boy in an oversized parka, and began marching off. Everyone slowly went off, some alone and others in groups. Ael examined, the only other person here was the clown who was attempting to pry the boards off the booth. “Uhm-do you need help?” He turned and Ael winced at the guy's makeup. Clowns were always unsettling, no matter what. “Eh, nah. I’ll get it eventually.” He went back to pulling and prying at the boards, the other just awkwardly standing there unsure of what to do. “What’s your name?” At this, he spun around and stuck one of his legs up. “Me? **I’m Avec, THE ULTIMATE CLOWN!!!** ” As if the bright makeup, red hair, and clown clothes didn’t give that away, _captain obvious_.

“Haha… **.I’m Ael, I’m the Ultimate Puppeteer.** ” Avec squinted, leaning towards them. _Weirdo_ ….with a flourish of his...clown tutu or if you can call it that, he turned around and strutted away towards the Ferris wheel, yelling inconclusive stuff about how ‘puppets and clowns don’t mix.’ 

‘Uh, that was certainly strange.’ Ael mentally shrugged.

They turned to walk in the opposite direction. The diner looked like something straight from a 90’s movie, the only difference being the windows being completely blacked out, as if this place wasn’t eerie enough. There were even a few tables outside, it was incredibly cold once they stepped inside, the dim lights weren’t helping the eeriness at all. Dirtied tiled floors and patterned wallpaper, everything looked relatively normal, wait...what was that clattering in the back?

Suddenly Elineth burst from the kitchen doors, dragging a red head behind her. She skidded to a stop at the sight of them. “Hello Ael!!” She skipped towards them, rocking on her heels back and forth. Her friend gave a small bow, offering a hand. “Greetings, **I’m Phoenix, the Ultimate BullFighter.** ” Ael felt slightly intimidated by the girl's structure as they could literally see muscles rippling under her shirt. Holy shit. Not that they were looking anywhere else of course! They reluctantly took her hand which she shook firmly. “I’m Ael, the Ultimate Puppeteer.” Elineth suddenly bounced back into their perspective, azure eyes gleaming in inquisitiveness. “Puppeteer? Like with... puppets?”

.... What other kind of puppeteer were there in the world? 

A hand landed on her shoulder, preventing the girl from pressing the question. Phoenix shook her head, although a smile was on her face. “We should head back now, Elineth.” The hyperactive girl huffed before shuffling out the door. The other girl followed with a miff, waving to them over her shoulder.

Well that was fun.

Anyway, on to the back room. It was less cold in here, and looked about what they’d expected. Ael absentmindedly thought about the situation as they walked out of the diner and down one of the side streets.

* * *

It seemed like large parts of the park were just patches of grass with trees and flowers, and many of the streets were dead ends. Looking ahead, Ael saw a Teacup ride, though most of the teacups were oxidizing on the earth. The girl who had been weeping from earlier was standing above someone they couldn’t quite see from their angle. Deciding to announce their arrival, they quietly called out, voice slightly cracking nervously. “H-hey you guys!!”

The girl jumped, spinning wildly until she saw them. A brown mop of hair popped up over the edge of the machine they’d been looking at. Ael waved nervously as they approached “Hey... I’m just looking around. I’m Ael by the way...” The girl was still tense, wringing her hands together. “I-I’m Sarai... **the Ultimate Knitter**.” They sputtered. “I-oh! I’m the Ultimate Puppeteer! It’s a pleasure to meet you!” 

**This was so fucking awkward.**

They looked down, there was a hand in front of them. Looking up, they saw that the other person had stood from their spot behind the machine. “ **I’m Blythe, Ultimate Psychologist.** ” Ael smiled, shaking their hand excitedly. While both were brunettes, Sarai’s was far lighter. Her wide violet eyes were also a far cry from Blythe’s sharp bronze ones. Realizing they were still holding the tallest hand, Ael quickly retracted, spewing an apology. Anyway, “What exactly were you doing, Blythe?” Sarai spun on her heel, huffing angrily. “Yeah Blythe! Tell them since you obviously won’t tell me.” She crossed her arms, looking away. The other did nothing but roll their eyes, ducking back down. “I understand the basics of machines so I wanted to see if this thing could work, but-“ They popped back out, both hands full of wires. “Everything’s slashed, and some of the metal is scorched.” Sarai started whimpering, holding the edges of her rosy dress. “E-everything’s demolished! It’s _hopeless_.” The other brunette simply groaned, giving Ael an exasperated look. Calmly striding off, they called over their shoulder, “Whatever, I’m heading to the meet up spot.” Sarai yelped and stumbled after them, leaving the smaller behind.

Ael watched them leave before turning back to the machine Blythe had been looking at. They weren’t lying when they’d said it looked scorched, half the back panel was completely melted! 

_Maybe they should just head back to the garden, clearly there was nothing here._

* * *


	2. Despair's Warm Embrace

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A new motive. 
> 
> I wonder what's going to happen next~

It seemed almost everyone was at the meetup spot already.

Phoenix was yelling at Dorian about something, Elineth shouting encouragement at her side. Blythe was apparently getting pestered by the parka guy judging by their face. Sarai and some other girl were chatting off to the side. Looking over, Ael decided they should probably investigate what had their unofficial leaders so worked up. “We should be precautious!!” The girl snarled at that, fist raised in anger. “I say we curb stomp that little bear and demand the keys to this place!” 

Oh geez. “Uh, you guys need help here?” Both heads snapped towards them. Dorian huffed, “Who are you?” The smaller shift. “Ael, Ultimate Puppeteer.” Elineth popped into their view, grinning madly. “I still want an explanation on how that works.” She was promptly shooed away by the leaders.  
The boy grumbled, nodding to them. “ **Dorian, Ultimate Parkourist.** ” They weren’t given time to respond before he rounded on Phoenix, already arguing again. Maybe it would be best to leave them alone. Ael looked over, it seemed everyone had returned while they’d been distracted. The three of them were approached by a girl with long braided hair, a giant bow hanging from her side. “Hey, everyone’s back.” That seemed to snap the leaders out of their argument, both flushing in embarrassment. Phoenix recovered first and nodded her thanks before turning to the gathered groups. “Alright! Everyone please share what you’ve found!” There was a moment of silence, as everyone just looked at one another.

The shortest among them stepped up first, pale face framed by black hair. “There are dorms down the right road by the Ferris wheel, each one with someone's name plate on it.” She stepped back, a lanky guy replacing her. Actually, he was the tallest among them, having a head over Dorian. “Uh, the left road is a dead end... just ends at another fence.” He hastily merged back into the crowd, and Avec stepped forward. The clown whipped out a fully detailed map of the park, “Hope this helps!” When did he even make that?

Dorian peered at it, before turning back to the gathered crowd. “So nobody found an escape?” Nobody spoke, although Sarai started weeping again. Phoenix exhales once again, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Well, how about we go to the dorms? It’s beginning to be dark out and we need rest.” There were murmurs of agreement as everyone started walking to the dorms.

The dorm building was huge, seeing as its three stories tall. Ael sighed, it was kind of annoying having their room all the way on the third floor. 

* * *

The room wasn't bad, oh no. 

The actual bedroom was very simple, just a bed and desk, but it wasn’t the only room. Other than the bathroom, there was an adjacent room, filled to the brim with puppets on shelves. From finger puppets to large almost life sized ones, but most looked only half way done. There was also a small stage, although it’d only be big enough for hand puppets. Ael didn’t really like that room, **s** _ome of the puppets looked like their classmates_. Instead they let themselves be taken into the dream world, they could deal with this bullshit in the morning. “Good morning everyone!” Ael yelped, they tumbled out of bed. “Rise and shine! Time for another day!” Finally untangled from the bedcovers, grey eyes looked for the demon bear. 

Coming up empty, the midget reluctantly stood from the floor and got ready.

The dorms were empty with no one around. The sun was shining brightly outside though, two people chatting next to the entrance who they didn’t know. It was the bow girl and super tall guy? Oh- they were hugging. “Uh-“ the boy jumped, falling on his rear. “Hi? I’m Ael. Who are you two?” The girl smiled at him, giving a playful curtsey in her flower dress. “ **I’m Faun, Ultimate Archer.** This-“ she gestured to the guy who hastily stood, “is **Quinlan, Ultimate Lucky student!** ” He gave them an awkward smile. 

Ael grinned at them. “So uh- where is everyone?” Faun looked around, scratching her cheek. “I think I saw Mielle heading to the diner? Everyone else was gone when we got here.” Giving a word of thanks, they headed off and left the couple behind.They could hear shouting coming from the diner before they even got inside. The girl sitting at the bar turned to them when they entered. Face shadowed by a large hoodie, Ael couldn’t exactly make out any facial features.

“If you’re wondering what's the ungodly noise, you can go see for yourself.” She turned back to the pile of clay she’d been mashing. “Uhm-!” The girl sighed, turning back to them. “I already know your name, Ael. I’m **Mielle, Ultimate Sculptor**. _Now please leave me alone_.”

Wow, harsh. 

Thoroughly embarrassed, Ael scurried to the kitchen only to stop in surprise. It was a total mess. The parka guy was laughing maniacally, holding a head of cabbage in his hands. A girl shorter than them was seething at him from across the table, brandishing a cleaver in one hand. Blythe was standing off to the side eating a cheese stick. Pinching themselves, they sighed when it was proved to be real. “What’s going on?” The girl’s head snapped toward them, snarl still there. “This motherfucker won’t give me the cabbage!!” What? “Why do you even want it?” She scoffed angrily at that.

“Because he won’t give it to me, so I want it.” At that he began laughing, head thrown back. “You’ll have to take it from me, midget!!” He ducked as the girl launched herself feet first at him, rushing behind Ael.

Quickly thinking for a distraction before becoming mincemeat, they blurted out the first thing that came to mind. “Uh! What are your guy’s names...?” That seemed to get their attention. “I’m **Hyacinth, the Ultimate Punster**!” She laughed, hands on her hips. “And don’t you forget it!” Blythe threw the remainder of their cheese stick at Hyacinth, screaming to “Shut the hell up!!” Before Ael could see the resulting chaos, the parka guy whisked them out the door. Mielle was already gone, no one else in the dining area. “Names **Lex, Ultimate Marksman**!” His grin was filled with mischief, blue eyes shining. They leaned back in nervousness, slowly inching toward the door. “R-right....” bolting out the door, they skidded to a halt right before hitting someone. Or something.

* * *

Did Monokuma count as ‘someone’?

Ael glared down at the bear, arms crossed in annoyance. “Hello, Monokuma.” 

The monochrome being sweat dropped at the cold tone. “Jeez kid, what’s with that look?” They didn’t respond. “Anyway! I’m personally delivering everyone’s motive!” That got their attention. “Motive?” After a moment of evil giggling, he responded with a short, “Your motives to kill each other!” It felt like getting slapped in the face. Right. _They weren’t here for a fun time, they were all technically prisoners_ to this... _stuffed toy._ He must’ve seen their sudden fear, for he cackled again. The demon handed them a slip of paper before disappearing in a cloud of smoke. Coughing briefly, they looked at the paper questioningly. 

Whatever was in this paper was supposed to motivate them to kill? The writing certainly was fancy, they gave him that. There was a picture taped on, specifically one of their most prized possessions. A large stuffed cat, as silly as it was. That thing had been with them through so much, and it was all they had left of any normalcy before becoming and Ultimate. 

The writing simply said

‘ **_It’d be a shame if it was shredded, wouldn’t it?_ **’

As much as it hurt, they’d rather see it torn limb from limb than kill someone else. Okay, maybe not that violently, but the point still stands. Thing was, they had no idea what others motives were. Their guess was it was likely family or people close to each person, which was actually a very good motive. **Ah, there's paranoia!** The door to the diner opened, reminding them they’d never managed to get anywhere. It was Hyacinth, she was frowning at her own slip of paper. ~~She looked at them, black eyes swirling with some emotion they couldn’t place.~~ “This sucks ass.” Bluntly put, they had to agree. So all they did was nod, crumpling their own paper. “ _My resolve set though._ ” The shorter one smiled at that, gazing far away. 

“I think everyone’s going to have different reactions to this.” The two stood for a while like that, simply thinking about the new variable. The silence was interrupted by Hyacinth getting shoved out of the way by Lex.

The boy was madly cackling at the sky, waving his own paper slip around. “ **This?!** Monokuma are you fucking serious?! This was the best you could come up with?” There was no sign of the mentioned bear, but that didn’t stop the boy from insulting him. Hyacinth seethed, turning to Blythe who’d just stepped out of the diner themselves. “Oi! Sake and mysterious!” The taller pointed at themselves questioningly. “Yes you! Throw me at him!” Ael zoned them out as the two began to argue about whether or not a person could be counted as a projectile.

Oh! There was Phoenix and Sarai!

Phoenix was stalking towards them, face set in a scowl. The other followed behind, quietly whimpering. The argument behind them faded off as they joined the group. “I assume you all got ‘motives’ as well?” Everyone looked at each other. Ael piped up with a, “Yeah, he’s targeting everyone individually.” Phoenix’s hair cast her face in shadow. “This is serious...” The other burst into tears again. “Of course it is! _We’re_ **_all_ ** _going to die!_ ” Sarai collapsed on the floor, violently sobbing now. They sighed, this would take a while. Eventually everyone gathered in the diner to discuss the whole ‘motive’ thing. Ael looked up from their hand of cards, as Phoenix called everyone to attention. They were about to win! Lex shot them a cruel smile, snatching the cards out of both their and Faun’s hands. “I’m glad everyone is here! I assume everyone got Monokuma’s little motive?” Everything erupted in noise, most shouting in anger, Sarai still sobbing under the counter. 

“ **Silence!!** ” She shouted, voice booming in the small space. Nobody spoke. The girl pinched the bridge of her nose, giving a heavy sigh. 

“With the new motives, we can assume that he has more influence and power than we first assumed.” Ael noticed she pointedly looked at a few people. She must have interrogated everyone else too. Hyacinth piped up from her sprawled position on the counter. “I still don’t get why we don’t _stab_ the little nuisance.” There was an annoyed sigh next to Ael. “I doubt it would be so simple.” Blythe was right, there was no way he wasn’t prepared to deal with anything. They felt a sudden surge of confidence as they looked around at all these Ultimates. “ _We can’t give up hope_ , we’ll surely find a way out eventually?” Even if it came out as a question, it seemed to relieve some of the tension in the room.

After Phoenix declared the meeting finished, everyone went their own ways. Ael stayed though, scratching at the plastic booth seats. This all sucked. It was only a few minutes since everyone left when the quiet was interrupted by soft crying. Who else was here. 

They peered over the seat, seeing a familiar hoodie covered head sitting on the floor. “Mielle?” The girl jumped, quickly wiping away stray tears from her eyes. “Y-yes. I didn’t know someone was still here.” From this position Ael could see purple eyes glaring him down. “Uh, yeah... neither did I?” They stared at each other for a moment. “So uh- why were you crying?” The girl just laughed, pulling the pink hood farther down her face. “I’m surprised nobody else is crying. Or maybe they are and I just got caught.” She had a point, the whole motive was taking a toll on everyone. Even Avec, the literal clown, seemed down trodden. They watched as she sped out the door, pulling the hood even farther down.

The ceiling sure did look nice. 

They could see the sun beginning to set from their seat on one of the rusting teacups. It must have been hours that they’d just watched ants crawling on the ground. As horrible as the situation was, they had to admit this place was extremely peaceful. “Ael, hey!” Avec called, walking up to their teacup. “Uhm...” the clown rubbed his makeup caked face nervously. “I wanted to apologize for earlier... about the whole Puppeteer thing.” 

Oh! They had completely forgotten that.

“Oh, it’s fine. What was it about anyway?” The boy fiddled with the edge of his wig. “Well there’s this whole thing in the Circus, where Clowns and Puppeteers are rivals....”

They blinked in surprise. “Wow, I never knew!” The two laughed.

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FlowersandKnives and I [ SBYAH ] take turns on editing.


	3. Honey, I'm Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Something unexpected happened...

Did Monokuma really need to make his morning announcement so loud? 

Ael shoved their head under the pillow trying to drown out the annoyance. After a few moments of not being able to sleep, they rolled out of the bed to get ready. Just as they finished pulling down their hoodie someone knocked on the door. It was Lex and Dorian who were arguing. Ael couldn’t even make out the words from the sheer volume. The rooms must have been soundproof, there’s no way they didn’t hear this. “Uhm... please quiet down.” Dorian snapped to attention, leaning down to look them in the eye. “Ael! We need your help with something.” Lex took the opportunity to shove the other back. “Yeah! Tell this uptight bitch that high trips are far superior than exercise!” 

_.... what??_

The taller righted himself, fixing the collar of his tracksuit. “This _moron_ thinks that the high someone gets from weed is better than getting high from good exercise!” Lex hissed at him, permanent grin still holding. “Because it is!! Not my fault you have a stick up your ass!” Ael huffed, a headache already forming. “I wouldn’t know, I’ve never been high and I’m not an exercise freak either.” The taller two stared down at them. Lex erupted in laughter, grabbing them by the shoulder. “Oh, you’re even more innocent than I thought!! Haha!” 

What the hell did that even mean?!

“W-what?!” They felt a hand pat their head and looked up at Dorian. “It’s nothing to feel ashamed of, Ael!” Eh? Why were they suddenly against them?!? They watched as the two walked down the hall, presumably to ask someone else.

Yep, there’s the headache. They should go grab some food to help.

* * *

For once, it seemed they had the diner to themselves, no yelling or fighting! Ael rummaged through the cabinets until they found a box of cheese crackers to munch on. They turned when the doors opened suddenly.   
Elineth stood in the entrance, staring them down as they stuffed more crackers in their mouth. She sleepily rubbed her eyes. “Mmm.. morning Ael... don’t mind me.” The girl robotically grabbed a coffee pot and began pouring way too much for someone her size. No wonder the weather girl had so much energy!! The coffee machine beeped just as they cleaned their cracker crumbs off the counter. “Ael, can you pass me the sugar? It’s right there.” They handed it over.... and watched her dump the entirety of sugar in the coffee.They scurried out the diner, not wanting to face the blunts of a caffeinated Elineth. “Ael!” He turned in surprise, they hadn’t expected Quinlan to actually remember their name. “Hey!” They stood staring at each other for a second. “Uh-“ He quickly interrupted before they could continue.

“Well I was wondering if you could help me... pick some flowers for Faun?” He started blushing and stuttering. “B-because I just thought... well, you seem really chill and-!” Deciding to save the poor boy from more embarrassment, Ael laughed.

“Of course I’ll help you! Let’s head to the garden.” He seemed thankful for them saving him his pride. The walk was peaceful, and they waved cheerfully at Avec as they passed ways. The garden was just as beautiful as they remembered, and now they actually had time to admire it. It looked like something right from a painting. So many flowers that even Ael didn’t recognize. The trees had all kinds of vines growing on them, creating a scene of color. They turned to Quinlan. “Do you know her favorite flowers?” He rubbed the back of his neck. “No...” Looking around, they spotted a large bush of honeysuckle. “How do you give her some of those?” He looked questioningly at where they were pointing. “I... guess that could work? Yeah!” The boy happily began collecting honeysuckle in his hands.

Watching him, Ael looked around the garden. They called out, “I’m going to go look for some more honeysuckle!” Quinlan gave a quick “Okay!” before turning back to his own bush. Weaving through the bushes wasn’t easy but they managed. Resting a hand on a huge cherry tree, they peered around. Grey eyes widened in surprise at a small cluster of flowers in a far away corner. red spider lilies. Crouching down, they cupped one I’m their hand, admiring it. It was their favorite flower, something about its abnormal shape intrigued them.

But back to the task at hand, there was apparently only one honeysuckle bush. Leaving the spider lilies, Ael picked some tulips from their own patch to bring back. As they came back, they saw Quinlan had already finished collecting honeysuckles. He’d taken the jacket around his waist to make a basket in order to carry them. The boy turned to them, questioningly gazing at the bunch of flowers in their hand. “I couldn’t find any more so I picked something else... I hope you don’t mind.” The boy shook his head, his brown hair moving with it. “I’m sure Faun will love them, thanks for helping me.” They took a hair tie from their hair to keep the flowers together. Gently setting it into the basket, Ael waved him off. They took a seat under a crape myrtle tree, idly staring at the sky. It was odd, having no wild animals in such a garden. They weren’t sure when they drifted off, just that they woke up to someone shaking them. When their eyes finally focus, they feel confusion upon seeing a distressed Phoenix. “What-“ She hauled them to their feet before any questions could be asked.  
  


_**“Didn’t you hear the announcement!?”** _

Now, seeing someone as composed as her panicking was very concerning. They shook their heads. “Someone’s been killed!!” Before they could voice their surprise, she began running with their hand in hers. Ael felt sweat forming on their brow as he rounded a corner to the dorms. Avec and Elineth were standing close to one of the bushes close to the path. The clown was vomiting and the other quietly crying on her knees. Reluctantly approaching, everything was drowned out by the ringing in their ears. He was hanging halfway out of the bush, neck slashed to the bone. Blue eyes lifeless. Honeysuckle and trampled tulips littered the garden. 

They fell back, staring at the crimson (pink) splattered on the ground.

Quinlan!


End file.
